Sunday, March 3, 2013

THE FABRIC FAIRY



“Rediscover time for your creativity” reads today’s email from Jo-Ann Fabrics. I need to do just that. A few outside activities invaded my schedule and suddenly I became distracted from forward movement in the sewing room. There’s nothing like momentum. Success begets success and all that.

I had mentioned to Chris in email that I wasn’t finding much by way of knits in the local market. And she wrote back some reminiscences of those days in the ‘70s and ‘80s when she sewed with knits for her children. She was good, too! I never quite got the hang of it, but making doll clothes is the perfect opportunity to experiment – if I could find the knits. While my interest has been to make a vintage wardrobe for my American Girl dolls, Emmy’s doll needs contemporary clothes to which she can relate -- t-shirts, sweatshirts, swimsuits, tights and spandex shorts.

I suppose because Chris and I had visited about knits, an ad for “The Fabric Fairy,” specializing in knit fabrics, appeared in the header above my inbox. I usually pay no attention to those, but this time I was curious enough to go to the website. And in reading through, I saw an invitation from Megan, apparently the owner, to contact her with my fabric needs. “Why not” -- I said to myself. So I pushed the “contact us” button and sent a message explaining that I’m making doll clothes and wondered if she could supply remnants and scraps in a variety of knits to include swimsuit fabrics and spandex.

Megan wrote back directly and recommended her bargain box. She offered to stuff a box with fabrics to my specifications. When I saw the price of the box -- $26 plus $8 shipping – I almost didn’t follow through. I knew it would be a “grab bag” that would include some fabric I would never select. On the other hand, $26 wouldn’t go far in buying yardage and I’d rather have the variety.  It would be fun to add some knit pieces to my scrap stash.

So I took Megan up on her deal and received a box stuffed with knit remnants. Not every piece was to my liking – but then, I knew that before I ordered. Over all I enjoyed the experience.  

My distractions are ongoing – organizational responsibilities and an upcoming trip/adventure will take March and the first week in April. Some people thrive on these things and move forward in spite of it. KW

[The picture shows Shirley Anne, American Farm Girl, modeling a sports outfit in corduroy ready to ship to Emmy. She's surround by the fabric remnants from “The Fabric Fairy.” My favorites are those closest to the doll.]

4 comments:

Chris said...

Another cute outfit for Emmy's doll! You are on a roll, Gramma! I'm a tiny bit jealous. You got a lot a fabric for your money. The grey fabric on the floor and the red check fabric would combine well for pants and jacket and t-shirt and skirt. You could make cuffs out of the check, or run a small fold up the sides of the pants outside seam for accent. Oh, my juices are flowing!

Yes, those knit classes I took at LCSC back in the early '70's were well worth my time. I had so much fun sewing for Matt and Ann!

Kathy said...

Thanks for sharing those imaginative combinations, Chris. I admit that I hadn't thought in those terms.

I know several people who enjoyed participating in those LCSC classes. Not sure they still do that. We'll have to get Hallie to tell us about the Saturday class she signed up for --truffle making. Happens in April,I think. Right now she's in Orlando for work.

Hallie said...

That's a pretty good collection. Oh yes, I can't wait to learn how to make hand dipped truffles! There are a lot of neat classes at the nearby community college. Another one that has my eye is Cleaning with Green Products. It's a class on making your own cleaning products with things you can buy at the store. I haven't signed up for that one yet but maybe I will.

In other news, the hummingbird feeder has been up for several days. One little guy has discovered it and I see him in the morning but there's not a lot of activity yet.

Kathy said...

For one who doesn't clean, I have quite an array of products on hand. I've never found a green product that really does the job. Some of them smell funny.

I will say though that we've successfully used baking soda and white vinegar to clear the shower drain. Seems to work pretty well.
The "recipe" I have is 1/2 cup baking soda to one cup of white vinegar. Heloise adds 1/4 cup salt to the baking soda.